Sounder Lakewood extension looms

Seattle Sound Transit says it will add Lakewood, Wash., to its regional passenger rail service offerings Monday, Oct. 8, which includes new service at South Tacoma Station. A dedication ceremony is slated for Oct. 6 to herald the event.

Five weekday, round-trip trains will travel between Lakewood and Seattle's King Street Station, with stops at South Tacoma, Tacoma Dome, Puyallup, Sumner, Auburn, Kent, and Tukwila, Sound Transit says.

The $78.6 million project included upgrading seven miles of existing BNSF right-of-way, and improvements to street crossings, in the Lakeview Subdivision route from South M Street in Tacoma to Bridgeport Way Southwest in Lakewood. That included new signal systems, and also street crossing improvements at 13 at-grade railroad crossings. Construction began in 2009.